August 23 Blue Jays vs Yankees

[riverside sluggers]

Lets Go Jays!!

 

Towers tries to continue torrid stretch

Blue Jays (63-61) at Yankees (68-55), 7:05 p.m. ET

 

The first one wasn't close, but the Blue Jays have three more chances to even the score. New York dominated the series opener, winning by a seven-run margin and sending the Jays to their fourth straight loss. By contrast, the Yankees have won eight of their last 11 games.

 

Toronto's Josh Towers will get the ball in the second game, and he'll be matched up against New York's Al Leiter. Towers has been one of his team's most consistent starters this season, and he recently became a 10-game winner for the first time in his career. Leiter, on the other hand, was released earlier in the year by Florida and has pitched to mixed results with the Yanks. The Blue Jays are 3-6 against the Yankees this season, and they're 5 1/2 games behind New York in both the American League East standings and the hunt for the Wild Card. Last year, when Toronto went 7-12 against New York, 10 of the 19 games were decided by two runs or fewer.

 

Pitching matchup

TOR: RHP Josh Towers

• 10-9, 4.12 ERA in 2005

• 0-1, 4.50 vs. NYY in 2005

 

NYY: LHP Al Leiter

• 3-3, 4.84 ERA in 2005

• 1-0, 0.00 vs. TOR in 2005

 

Player to watch

Towers is 7-4 with a 3.43 ERA on the road this season. He has wins in three of his last four outings, and he's thrown six straight quality starts.

 

Quick hits

The Blue Jays are 26-20 against AL East opponents, 34-25 at home and 29-36 on the road. They're also 43-46 against right-handed starters and 20-15 against southpaws. ... Toronto's 63-61 record is 11 games better than the mark at this point last season (52-72). The team's best record through 124 games is 77-47, achieved in 1985. The worst was 39-85, done in 1979.

 

The Yankees have won three of four and eight of 11. ... Tino Martinez played in the 2,000th game of his Major League career on Monday, appearing as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement for Jason Giambi. ... Felix Escalona notched his first hit as a Yankee with an RBI single in the seventh inning on Monday.

[soxie thefangirl]

Woo. Let's go Jays!

[riverside sluggers]

pitcher vs batter matchups

 

Josh Towers vs: (career against Yankees in 7 games a 1-5 record with a 3.89 ERA)

Robinson Cano, 0 for 2, Walk

Bubba Crosby, 0 for 1

John Flaherty, 0 for 2

Jason Giambi, 6 for 18 (.333 avg) 3 Doubles, HR, 3 RBIs, 2 Walks, 2 Ks

Derek Jeter, 8 for 20 (.400 avg) 3 Doubles, HR, 4 RBIs, K

Tino Martinez, 6 for 19 (.316 avg) 3 Doubles, RBI, 3 Walks, 3 Ks

Hideki Matsui, 2 for 9 (.222 avg) 2 Doubles, K

Jorge Posada, 5 for 13 (.385 avg) 2 Doubles, HR, 2 RBIs, Walk, 3 Ks

Alex Rodriguez, 4 for 16 (.250 avg) 2 HRs, 3 RBIs, Walk, 3 Ks

Gary Sheffield,1 for 9 (.111 avg) RBI, 2 Ks

Bernie Williams, 5 for 9 (.556 avg) 3 HRs, 5 RBIs, 2 Walks

Tony Womack, 0 for 3

 

Al Leiter vs: (career against Blue Jays in 6 games a 4-2 record with a 3.23 ERA)

Russ Adams, 0 for 2

Aaron Hill, 0 for 3

Shea Hillenbrand, 3 for 13 (.231 avg) Double, HR, 4 RBIs, Walk, K

Orlando Hudson, 2 for 2 (1.000 avg)

Reed Johnson, 0 for 3, K

Corey Koskie, 0 for 3, K

Frank Menechino, 0 for 2, Walk

Alex Rios, 1 for 3 (.333 avg) K

Vernon Wells, 1 for 2 (.500 avg) Double, Walk

Gregg Zaun, 0 for 2, Walk

[stocker323]

Blue Jays

Adams SS

Johnson LF

Wells CF

Hillenbrand 1B

Hill 3B

Zaun C

Rios RF

Menechino DH

Hudson 2B

 

Yankees

Jeter SS

Williams CF

Sheffield RF

Rodriguez 3B

Matsui LF

Giambi DH

Posada C

Martinez 1B

Cano 2B

[soxie thefangirl]

Ah so Jeter is back in the lineup.

[riverside sluggers]

aww i bet arod kissed jeter's boo boo on his thumb to make it allll better

[yankeessuck013]

ahhhh well mr. leiter is on the mound today.

[ARod2212]

Williams, 2.192 OPS vs. Towers.

[yankeessuck013]

williams strikes out, and a-fraud is robbed of a hit by hillenbrand....end first: 0-0

[yankeessuck013]

giambi out on strikes, whore-hey up

[yankeessuck013]

homerun vernon wells....1-0 Jays

[riverside sluggers]

Vernon Wells solo jack to left field!!!!!

[yankeessuck013]

2-0 jays

[redsoxrules]

a fraud grounds out to pitcher end of 4 still 2-0 go jays!

[yankeessuck013]

15 in a row retired by Towers.

[yankeessuck013]

he has only thrown 51 pitches thru 5 innings.

[snb988]

bases loaded for yanks, no outs

[snb988]

6 pitches and he gets out of it, yanks get only 1 run

 

2-1 canadians

[yankeessuck013]

sheffield grounds in to DP

 

2-1

[yankeessuck013]

leadoff double for hill

 

leiter has thrown 105 pitches so far

[snb988]

5 batters to the plate, three successive singles, bases loaded no outs, and towers gets out of it with 6 pitches. go figure.

[snb988]

Leiter: 7 IP, 2 ER, all around good job. High pitch count, as usual.

[yankeessuck013]

embree warming up

[yankeessuck013]

jays take the lead in the 8th...3-2....runners on the corners, 1 out

[yankeessuck013]

Homerunnnnnnn Tek!!

 

#21!

[yankeessuck013]

bases loaded for the jays, 1 out

[yankeessuck013]

sturtze gets out of it, giving up 1 run

 

going to the bottom of the 8th: 3-2 jays

[yankeessuck013]

womackon 2nd, 2 outs

[ORS]

You know the Yankees are catching breaks when Orlando Hudson boots one for the 3rd out.

[yankeessuck013]

a-fraud fails in the clutch again....3-3